He became upset with the Lakers’ inconsistent effort. He became irritated for Rockets guard James Harden not being called for a foul on Lakers guard David Nwaba. He became angry with the Lakers’ 139-100 loss to the Houston Rockets on Wednesday at Toyota Sports Center, an outcome he called “embarrassing” for obvious reasons.

The Lakers (20-48) have lost to the Rockets (47-21) by 39 points twice this season. They have lost three consecutive games, 10 of 11 and 38 of their last 48. And Walton has sensed his players are wearing ear plugs when he preaches endlessly about hustling, trusting each other and communicating.

“We need to figure out as a group, not individually, but as a group how to handle adversity,” Walton said. “We do a lot of blaming of other people and we need to look at ourselves and control what we can control. Until we do, there’s going to be a lot of frustrating nights.”

Walton changed his starting backcourt for the second consecutive game, surprisingly pairing third-year guard Jordan Clarkson with veteran guard Nick Young instead of second-year guard D’Angelo Russell. None of them proved Walton right via their promotion or demotion.

After Young went scoreless after missing all nine of his shots, including seven from 3-point range, Walton said Young “obviously must’ve been rusty” after sitting the past two games so Walton could play younger players. Clarkson had 18 points and three assists but was 7 for 19 from the field, leading him to concede he’s “trying to figure out my balance” on when to shoot and pass.

“He had good moments and moments that weren’t great. But one thing I love about (Clarkson) is he gives that effort,” Walton said. “He never takes plays off.”

Walton could not say the same thing about Russell, who had five points while going 2 for 10 from the field (0 for 5 from 3-point range) and collecting more fouls (six) and turnovers (seven) than assists (three).

“Still trying to figure it out. Different role and stuff like that. It’s whatever,” Russell said of his new role. “It’s great. I hope (Walton’s) doing what he expects. But it is what it is.”

Russell downplayed his demotion in Monday’s loss to Denver, while emphasizing the importance of closing out games. He did not receive that wish after fouling out with 6:40 left.

“I was playing like (crap) the whole game,” Russell said. “I didn’t think it really mattered.”

Lakers third-year forward Julius Randle had a career-high 32 points on 13-for-17 shooting, while Lakers rookie forward Brandon Ingram added 18 points on 8-of-14 shooting. Though Walton “loved his game offensively,” Walton chewed Randle out late in the game for failing to close out on shooters.

“I tried to stay aggressive and stay locked in the whole game. But the fourth quarter was garbage,” Randle said. “I blame myself for that. I have to be a better leader.”

Other elements contributed to the Lakers’ loss.

Rockets guard Lou Williams reminded his former employer why he became such an attractive trade chip last month en route to a team-leading 30 points on 11-of-17 shooting. Harden seemingly did anything he wanted with his 17th triple double of the season with 18 points, 13 assists and 12 rebounds. Houston also posted 62 points in the paint.

For better and for worse, the Lakers’ young roster also featured mixed results with their development. That left an exasperated Walton frustrated that his honest words have not sparked enough action.

“The things I’m tired of talking about are the things we can control,” Walton said. “That’s how hard we fight and how much effort we give. Do we get back on transition defense all game long? It’s in anybody’s control, whether you’re in junior high, high school, anybody can control those things. Those are the things I’m tired of talking about.”

Mark Medina has been the Lakers beat writer for the Los Angeles Daily News since 2012. He also works as a Lakers insider for AM570 and is heard on national radio outlets, including The Dan Patrick Show, The Herd with Colin Cowherd, The Chris Mannix Show, Fox Sports Radio, CBS Sports Radio, Yahoo! Sports Radio and SB Nation Radio. Medina also appears frequently on Spectrum SportsNet and NBC4's "Going Roggin."